Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, Minnesota's newest and wealthiest hockey players, pulled on Wild practice jerseys for the first time for a "captain's practice" Monday, Jan. 7, and talked about the significance of the moment.

Both, however, felt the need to inform NHL fans just how sorry they are about the league's 113-day lockout.

"Everyone has to apologize to the fans," Parise said at the Xcel Energy Center, just 34 hours after the NHL and the players' association reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement.

Parise and Suter weren't any more responsible for the lockout than any other well-paid player, of course, but they know that while owners and players quibble about terms of a collective bargaining agreement, it is the fans who get nothing. And it was not long after Parise and Suter signed identical 13-year contracts worth $98 million with the Wild six months ago that NHL owners began laying the groundwork for a labor lockout by moaning about player salaries spiraling out of control.

That's part of the unpleasant business side of pro sports that has led to lockouts affecting Major League Baseball, the NFL, NBA and -- for the second time in eight seasons -- the NHL, Parise noted.

A lockout occurs and fans can only sit and stew.

"You apologize," Parise said, "and want to put a great product on the ice and slowly earn their trust back."

Parise, a seven-year forward for the New Jersey Devils, started his pro career in the American Hockey League in 2004-05 because of the previous NHL lockout.

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So did Suter, a defenseman who signed as a free agent after previously playing for the Nashville Predators.

Suter, too, was apologetic Monday.

"We definitely have to apologize for putting the fans through that," he said. "That's not right. You shouldn't have to do that to them.

"So, obviously, apologies, and then we just have to go out and play our hardest for them and know that if we play our hardest, hopefully they'll come back."

Parise and Suter were two of 18 Wild players who skated through drills and a short three-on-three scrimmage at the X on Monday while Wild coaches and management watched from the seats above. Coaches cannot work with players until training camp opens, and the NHL cannot set that date or the date when the season will begin until the collective bargaining agreement is ratified.

Hockey-oriented websites are estimating that camps will open by Saturday and the first games will begin six or more days later.

Wild coach Mike Yeo, like everybody else, talked about being antsy for camp to start.

"It's been building for a couple of months," he said, "but to know that it's upon us now, we're real excited. You can sense that the players are excited, too. Just to get a chance to see everybody again, it's nice."

Yeo talked about the satisfaction of finally seeing Parise and Suter on the ice together for the first time as Minnesota players, and the two friends seemed equally delighted about their first on-ice steps as Wild players.

"It was real exciting," said Parise, whose father, J.P., until Monday, was the lone member of his family to play for a Minnesota pro hockey team as a member of the old North Stars. "Coming into the locker room with everybody there and being able to put on a team jersey, it was a lot of fun."

Suter called joining his second pro team a bit weird.

"It was definitely a different feeling," he said, "but also an exciting feeling, knowing that I'm here."

Cal Clutterbuck, Kyle Brodziak, Niklas Backstrom, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Tom Gilbert and Matt Cullen joined Parise, Suter and 10 other players on the ice Monday as the group worked under the tutelage of freelance skating instructor Andy Ness.

Dany Heatley, Mikko Koivu and Mikael Granlund are among the players scheduled to join the group Tuesday or Wednesday.